Tuesday

Again Jesus said,

“Peace be with you!

As the Father has sent me,

I am sending you.”

~John 20:21 (NIV)~

 

Just as some of us were On Mission in Kentwood Saturday, you are called to be On Mission wherever you are.

 

KneEmail
“At the name of Jesus every knee should bow…” (Philippians 2:10).
Mike Benson, Editor

IT DOESN’T TAKE much to convince most Christians that our country is in trouble…

The signs are all around us. Our culture seems to be disintegrating around us. The grossest immoralities are recast as tolerance. Christian conviction is tagged as intolerance. Honesty and integrity are forced to take a back seat to personal gain and self-gratification. We cry out, “Is there any hope at all?”

Sometimes we get nostalgic and talk about the “good ole’ days,” back when gasoline was 20 cents/gallon and nobody locked their doors. Yet, we know that the same evils that take place today were going on back then. There was immorality, drunkenness, wars, unfair and cruel treatment of other people, cheating, lying, and disobedience. Let us be careful not to paint a picture for our children that everything was wonderful then, and everything is terrible now.

Regardless of what the future holds for us, we can have confidence that our Lord is great and power. He is fully capable of helping us through every time period and every problem we face. “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it.” (I Corinthians 10:13-NAS) Jesus taught us to ask the Lord to lead us from temptation and deliver us from evil. If we have this prayer in our hearts and actively seek His way of escape, He will deliver His people.

Sometimes the way out of evil is hard. He never promised us that the way of escape would always be easy. We must first commit ourselves to Him. Like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, we must “purpose in our hearts” not to cave in to the temptations that we know are coming. We must have the attitude of our Savior, when in temptation He prayed, “Not My will but Thine be done.” We must guard our hearts against evil, for this is the place from which temptation turns into sinful actions. And we must be willing to crucify self and let Christ live in us. “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)

Lord, deliver us and our nation from evil. Turn our hearts to You. (Roger Wright)

No temptation has overtaken you

but such as is common to man;

and God is faithful,

who will not allow you to be tempted

beyond what you are able,

but with the temptation

will provide the way of escape also,

that you may be able to endure it.”

~I Corinthians 10:13-NAS~